Depths of Water
by Amorette Asher
Summary: After a hurricane, the surviving group of cats learn to survive on their own in a place they've never encountered.
1. Watery Grave

_**DEPTHS OF WATER**_

**A/N: Sup. This is my first warrior story I'm **_**uploading**_**, I say that because I used to write really bad ones when I was younger XD. Anyway, I just wanted to see if I could. This story starts two generations after the real books, so it's like the younger generations grandkids. The grandkids of really important cats are most of my main characters. I put different characters in my own couplings and used those, so yeah. Enjoy! Hope you like it! In a few chapters, I'll have all the names and descriptions because…well it'll be a waste of time if I do it now since EVERYTHING is about to change. R&R please! **

**-2XA**

_**Prologue**_

Moonlight filtered through the trees, hitting the earth in shafts of white light, and causing eerie shadows to fly across the ground and unto any surface. There was only silence here. A silence that made the fur on your back stand up and the voice in your mind tell you to run away- fast. The sort of silence that made you jump at every rustle you thought you heard, or every breeze of air you imagined. Although you thought you were safe, you couldn't rid yourself of the feeling that something was about to happen. Sadly…you were right…

You heard it first, before anything reached you, it reached your ears. You tried to understand the sound, but it was far before your time, a noise that would not be known by you. You try to ignore it, but every instinct you have is telling you to run again, even though fear holds you to the spot. The sound grows closer, like dry leaves as they brush against each other. As it grows louder, your fear does as well, and finally, when you see the crest of blue in the distance, you run. You run, but it still reaches you.

The blue water swallows you, taking you into its depths and taking the air from your lungs. It tosses you, spins you, crashes you, and you scream beneath the waves. Fear overwhelms you, and instead of swimming, you thrash out of fear. Time seems to stop as you continue to reach for the top of the water, but you are disoriented, and you can't tell which way is up. Finally, you reach the surface, jumping out of the water and gasping for breath. Your paws hit the water with great force as you try to keep your head above water, but you are not a fish, in fact, you're not even a Riverclan cat. You feel your legs grow tired, and as you slip underneath the water, you wonder if it is the last time you would ever see the moonlight…

Underwater, everything is up, down, right, and left. You search desperately for something to cling to, and find a seemingly sturdy surface, but when you reach out to claw into it, your claws cannot breech the shell and one rips off. You yowl into the water, releasing the air you had been already struggling to hold. You gasp again, inhaling water, and only making you feel more breathless. The water has faint traces of red in it from the blood on your paw. You realize as the water stings your paws that you have many cuts from trying to grip the surface before, and you think that perhaps it had been a tree. Your thoughts are delusional, like wondering when you will next get a vole from the fresh-kill pile; you amuse yourself with the thought until you realize that you have been getting deeper in the blue water. The new thought that crosses your mind is much darker. _I am going to die…_

Adrenaline pulses through your veins as you make a last attempt to spring yourself out of the water. Again, breaching your watery weight, you yowl into the night darkness, screeching for help…anyone's help. You don't know what territory you're in, except that it's not your own. You don't see trees, so you assume its Windclan's moors, although maybe the trees have blurred because of your speed in the water current. You start to give up hope. You start to hope to Starclan that you made it into the stars beside them. You start to let the fear swallow you and let the water as well. AS you fall beneath the water line and are taken into the blue depths you feel a strange calm, as if dying was no bother anymore, and that you were fine with it. As you slowly sink lower, you start to admire the pretty sparkle of the blue water. At least you'll have a pretty grave...

Your breathing has already started to slow down, and so have you. You've let yourself simply float, float and watch the shimmering water around you. You smile at the moonlight filtering into the water. Maybe swimming wasn't as bad as you had previously assumed. Dark spots start to cloud your vision, but unlike you thought, your lungs don't burn anymore…truthfully…nothing feels like anything anymore, except for the strange calm that you let swallow you. You blink slowly matching the time you close and open your eyes to the slowing heartbeat that pounds in your ears. Your breaths are gone, and you are in no hurry to take the next one. You don't think of anyone you leave behind, you don't think of anyone, no one besides the starry furred cats you now see before you. One of them nods their head at you, beckoning you. You want to swim, but you can't reach them. You give a quizzical glance, but you make no more effort to move.

Suddenly the current starts taking you to them, and you are no longer confused, as you are coming fast to the cat. As the cat grows closer, it seems to look familiar to you. Maybe it is a mother, or a father, maybe even and aunt or an uncle, or a best friend, or a cousin. Maybe it was your mentor, or a leader you followed dutifully, maybe it was just someone you loved, or someone who loved you back. Perhaps it didn't matter anymore, because you could no longer feel anything but the love that the starry _cats_ were showing you. So many more had appeared as you'd come close, and each one gave a bitter-sweet glance at you, glad, yet sad, that you had joined your ranks. You closed your eyes without a second thought. Taking in all the feelings of love and warmth they gave you. You waited for your eyes to open in the starry home of Starclan…

_**CHAPTER ONE: WATERY GRAVE**_

_**BLUEHAZE…...THUNDERCLAN**_

_The water washed over me with so much power that I had no time to prepare myself. I was horrified, almost too scared to do anything but thrash around in fear. Finally, when I gathered my wits, I started to try and swim upwards, but as I did, I was shoved into something so hard, that the arm that took the most force of it shot arcs of pain upwards. I yowled silently in the water, panicking because it hurt far too much to swim, and you had no understanding of how much relief flew through me as I felt teeth grab my scruff and leaf me to the top of the water…_

I jumped awake. Head popping up, looking around in so much complete fear that you'd have thought I had just woke up from death. _Just a nightmare Blue, its fine…_ I thought to myself, taking a breath as I stood up, stepping over the warriors that surrounded me around the den. I almost snorted in amusement when I saw Cricketfang, his tail flung across Blackrain's nose and his paws laying across Spottedwave's back. His back legs were flattened and prodding a very obviously uncomfortable Greeneye in the stomach. She moved a little, but he only kicked her back into place. I laughed to myself, traveling lightly into the bright sunlight outside. Thank goodness the rain was gone, things had gotten very aggravating in the camp all day long. The Thunderclan cats had started arguing with each other out of boredom. It was almost amusing, unless you just wanted some silence.

"Hey Bluehaze," Oceanblaze's voice was soft behind me, and I turned to greet her, giving her a grin that she returned slightly. "Why are you up so early?" The unease of my dream returned and I quickly averted the question.

"I wanted to be awake for the silence," I said, then, flicking my tail for her to be quiet, I pretended to listen to the silence around me with happiness, I gave her a wider grin when she giggled at me. "Anyway, why are _you_ up so early?" Immediately she looked to her paws, ears flattened as she became nervous.

"Actually…I wanted to ask you a question that's…sort of related to that…" She said quietly, looking around, it looked as if she was checking to see if anyone was in the clearing that might hear us. As the moments passed by, my curiosity grew.

"What's up?" I asked as she stepped towards me, before whispering,

"Do you have this really bad feeling that something going to happen really…really bad?" I looked at her in surprise. Secretly, I'd been harboring this feeling for a while. The feeling that something bad is going to happen, and that it will change so much…I'd been trying to shove it aside, but nothing seemed to work.

"Actually…sort of…I even had this nightmare-"

"About drowning?"

"Yeah, how'd you know?"

"I had the same dream…I was drowning, and I couldn't breathe, but right before I could stop breathing, I hit something that was floating and scrambled on it…when I looked around…everything was ruined…" Oceanblaze spoke quickly now, fear rising in her voice as she continued. "Everyone was gone…Luckily though, it was a dream…right?" She added fast, as if trying to reassure herself. She probably was. I nodded.  
"Yeah, it probably doesn't mean much…it's just that we had similar dreams, I was drowning, but someone saved me…so see, we didn't have the _same_ dream. We just both dreamt about drowning. That's probably normal since all the rain." I answered, and as I spoke, I reassured myself that it was true. It made sense…sort of.

"Right! That's what I thought!" Oceanblaze grinned in relief, "Alrighty then, I'm going to see if Yellowrock can put me in the dawn patrol, you want to come?"

"Sure," I answered. We started padding towards the tall rock, and when we got there, we saw Yellowrock sitting below it, yawing in exhaustion.

"You were on the night patrol, weren't you?" Oceanblaze asked, concern in her eyes. I looked at him too. He looked unkempt, but not too bad.

"Oh I'm fine," He responded, giving his daughter a lick on the head, he nodded politely at me, but said nothing. "Anyway, is there anything you want?"

"Yeah, we want to get on the Dawn patrol. Will that be good?" I asked, teetering awkwardly on my back and front paws. It was always weird when I was around father's and daughter's…usually I got jealous…and remembered…things that happened to me when I was younger. I tried to avoid it…but fatherly love in a clan was basically everywhere.

"Yep, why don't you take Tawnyfern and…someone else you don't mind waking up, just tell me before you leave who you picked…" Yellowrock ordered, yawning again. Oceanblaze regained her concerned look, but kept her tongue.

"Great!" I turned to Oceanblaze and gave her a look full of trouble, "Let's go jump on our friends…"

…..

"I still can't believe you did that to me…" Cricketfang muttered, shaking his head. I let out an amused _mrrow_ at my brother and cuffed him over the head with my paw. Oceanblaze and Greeneye purred in laughter.

"Keep up all of you," Tawnyfern said, sounding faintly amused herself. "And don't be too loud, we don't want to wake up anything and with you all talking so much we wouldn't be able to hear it and we'd get a nasty surprise and potentially a few injuries…" She warned. We quieted down…a little. Greeneye and Cricketfang started playing hopscotch, leaping over one another and landing very quietly while Oceanblaze and I stifled our laughs. After a while, we stopped, and instead focused on the actual thing we were supposed to be doing.

"Hey Bluehaze, get the Lake border really quick with Oceanblaze and then we can turn around," Tawnyfern ordered, "Find any trouble, yell, we'll wait here." She sat on the ground and flicked her tail at the surrounding area.

"Race ya!" Oceanblaze said, running fast toward the lake.

"No fair!" I said as she disappeared into the trees, racing, loudly may I add, after her. When I came to the edge of the forest I saw she had stopped running and her eyes were at the shore of the lake. The _new_ shore of the lake. Never had I seen the water up so high, it was almost touching the edge of the forest, with a couple of steps I would be paw deep in water.

"Bluehaze look!"

"I see, it's up really high. Never seen it all the way up here before."

"Not that! Riverclan territory! Look!" My eyes followed hers, and I saw Riverclan territory. Though it really wasn't Riverclan territory, it was just water, _moving_ water…Water moving so fast that I could actually see it progressing towards us. I couldn't see where the water ended actually...it was just blue as far as I could see. Fear gripped my stomach as I remembered my dream…

_-…Lungs burning without the oxygen and black dots blocking my water-filled vision…-_

"I don't think it was a coincidence about our dreams," Oceanblaze said, fear making her voice a pitch higher as we both stood frozen in place.

"Yeah…me either…" I then remembered Tawnyfern's orders, and I guess Oceanblaze did too, because without hesitation we both turned and ran together back towards the others, and when we reached them, we didn't stop to pause…

"_RUN!"_

_**GHOSTSHADE…..SHADOWCLAN**_

_I was running…as fast as I could…away from the water surging after me. I knew I would have nowhere to run soon, unless I could reach the edge of the next body of water fast enough before it grew to wide…sadly it was too late…the water would be impossible to simply jump over…As I was running and panicking to find a new place to go, I saw a dark grey shape moving in the water, and then it disappeared from view. I didn't realize it was a cat until I jumped into the rushing water to save it. I grabbed it's scruff quickly, and with the extra strength I had, swam up to the surface with all my might, pulling the gray, Thunderclan smelling she-cat up with me…fear rose in my chest as the current dragged the both of us…even faster now…forwards…I was sinking…I was going to drown here…_

I woke up on my feet, looking around at the hisses that soon followed my awakening. Whoops.

"Sorry you guys," I said quietly, stepping around all of the Shadowclan cats as I made my way outside. The dream still haunted me, but I pushed it aside for the moment, focusing on other things…like my stomach. I padded out into the open clearing. It was far too early for _anyone_ to be awake now. Yet still I saw Sundart ahead of me, sitting and looking up at the blue sky. "Hey." I mewed a greeting, admiring the she-cat's pretty green eyes. Of course, I prepared for her cruel words, and was surprised when she gave a weak mewl of a response back.

"Sorry if I seem off but…something's not right today. It doesn't feel right…" She said, looking down at her pews and moving around the dirt around them. She was usually cynical, sarcastic, narcisistic, but not pessimistic. I mean she was, but in a strange, twisted, cheery way. She was the prettiest she-cat in the clan, completely uninterested in any other tom, and proud of it, but today she wasn't herself. At all.  
"What's up?" I asked, sitting beside her and trying to see what she was looking at. I failed, the sky was empty.

"I don't know….it just feels…weird. Do you have the feeling?" She asked absent-mindedly. She finally looked at me, worry in her green gaze. "I had a strange nightmare that was way too realistic to be just nothing…" My heart skipped a beat at her words.

_-…I would never wake up to see my clanmates again. No more hunting. No more grooming. No more sun-bathing. I would drown slowly and painfully…-_

The memory of my own dream made me shiver, but I said nothing, only listened to see if she'd say anything more.

"I mean, do you think that maybe…maybe it's Starclan?" She questioned skeptically. It was rare for a cat that wasn't planning to be medicine cat to have dreams with Starclan, but it had happened before. I wondered if my dream was also of Starclan. Instead of stating anything about myself, I went with the Starclan question.

"It'd be unlikely…but maybe…why you though? Why not a medicine cat, or a deputy or leader?" I countered, and she sighed sadly.

"I don't know. I just want an explanation that doesn't seem so bad…"

"Yeah, I hope your premonition is wrong." She had no idea how wrong I wanted her to be.

"Ghostshade, Sundart, what are both of you doing awake so early?" I heard Hawkshred, the deputy, call us and give us a questioning look. We moved towards him.

"We just…woke up…" Sundart offered, giving her best I'm-pefectly-alright-not-really look. He must've got it, because worry shined in his eyes.

"Alright, just, while you're up, why don't you go hunting with Jaystorm and Liontail?" He asked, and we nodded almost relunctantly. I didn't think I would catch much, because now that I had Sundart mirror my feelings, they seem to have grown in intensity and I could no longer ignore them. I was really distracted. Distraction messes up a Shadowclan cat's light, silent tread.

We had no idea what we were coming up to.

_**STARCLAN…DURING THE STORM**_

The starry cats welcome each new-arrival with open-hearts. These were true soldiers, and soon they would know the turmoil that the cats below would have forced upon them. Truthfully, the cats below were not the only cats that would have destiny after disaster. The starry cats also searched for the star-filled pelts of the cats that would guide the ones below. The names of the cats hung high in every mind. Even the new-arrivals felt the need to find these needed cats, but these cats deaths were the most long-lasting…and they knew that patience for those below would be needed. When the first cat broke into the starry ranks of Starclan, all the cats eyes moved to her. She was wide-eyed, as gray as twilight, and shivering with fear. As the realization dawned on her that she was in Starclan, disappointment rose in her eyes, followed by anger, and a single muttered swear on the cursed water that drowned her. When she noticed that all eyes were on her, she stood up straight, eyes confused, and curious as she looked around.

"Uh…hi?" Her voice rang out in the nearly silent afterlife.

"Hello." A sleek blue-gray she-cat welcomed the other feline with slight enthusiasm.

"You're…?" She questioned the she-cat for her name. Although she was legendary, she knew not to expect to be known by the young one, and it didn't shake her, as she did not think of herself as others might.

"Bluestar, I was a leader of Thunderclan, far before your time." Bluestar answered with a slight purr. This she-cat shared blood with her. She was kin of Mistystar, a leader from Riverclan. Bluestar was happy to finally meet her, even under the horrific circumstances.

"Oh," She said, and only then did the recognition dawn in her silver-gray eyes. "You're my…grandmother…"

"Great-grandmother actually," Bluestar purred with amusement as the she-cat looked amazed to meet her. "But that's another matter, for a far brighter day. Today, we must speak Silvereye," Bluestar said, her voice taking a dark tone. Silvereye narrowed her eyes.

"What about?"

"The new clan will need you…it will be confused, startled, and fearful…we think someone there age, who knows them better, would be of more help. We want you prepared to send messages to the ones who made it. Starclan will need to be more interactive if the clans are still to survive."

**A/N: Weee, Chapter one is done! (Rhyme) Hope you liked it, review please!**

**~2XA**


	2. The Fear That Follows

**A/N: Sup. **

**I have to say something before the **_**actual**_** author's note. Okay, so I read this fanfic by Digistend Angel and Izzy, this particular one was made by Angel. As I was reading it, I saw that Angel had tried to kill herself, and a reason of that was cyberbullying. Her brother asked that people tell everyone what happened, so here I am telling you. Cyber-Bullying is stupid….QUIT IT…you want to make someone kill themselves? Oh by the way, don't laugh and say; "I would, it's funny!" because it wouldn't be funny to **_**you**_** if it happened to **_**you.**_** So people, if you want to be mean, be mean and lonely. **

**Anyway, sorry for ranting a bit there but bullies make me mad. On a lighter note, I hope you like my story! Please, please, PLEASE review. I don't have any reviews…and it makes me sad, because the more reviews I get the more people will read….so yeah…x.x**

**~2XA**

_**CHAPTER TWO: THE FEAR THAT FOLLOWS**_

_**BLACKRAIN…THUNDERCLAN**_

Why did I have to wake up to screeching, a wind-storm, and paws stomping all over me in confusion? Why couldn't I wake up to food, warmth, sunlight, and _a normal_ day? When I did get up, feeling very crushed, I made it out of my den with the rest of the clan. My eyes widened when I saw Greeneye, Oceanblaze, Bluehaze, Tawnyfern, and Cricketfang. All of them were screaming their tails off as they arrived in the clearing of the camp.

"Water…so much…everywhere…Riverclan…flooded…" Bluehaze was panting, almost collapsing on the ground like Cricketfang had. Oceanblaze however, seemed to be unnerved.

"There's a flood in Riverclan…It's the biggest flood I've ever seen in my entire life," She said, and as if that wasn't a dark enough image, she added a courteous: "_Ever."_

Tornstar's ear flicked, his eyes narrowed, and his tail lashed behind him. "How close is it?" He asked the she-cat, and she answered without a moment of pause.

"Far, but it's fast. So fast." Again, she repeated her-self, and now realized that it was probably because she was, in fact, horrified. It was almost as if she _knew_ that the water would come over to Thunderclan, although that would be uncalled for considering that Thunderclan didn't normally flood like Riverclan did, but then again, the dawn patrol cats looked so scared that they must believe it was true.

"Do you think it'll reach us soon?" Tornstar asked, he looked shocked, I'm sure he had no idea about this, if he had I know he would have prepared and warned us. I had definitely not been warned previously. It hit me that I wasn't as surprised as I should've been. While the rest of the clan looked shocked and fearful, I noticed a few faces looked like their worst fears had come true, and they were past the 'horrified' look and to the 'how can I make it' face. Next to me was Frostleaf, and she had the expression on her face similar to mine. How can we make it?

"I…I think it will…any minute now…" Oceanblaze said, her voice breaking in sadness. The clan took the grave news in silence…until Grayrose started freaking out.

"What about the kits? Where will they go? How will they survive?" She was cradling her two small kittens, my younger sister and brother, Blackkit and Foxkit. Blackkit's name wasn't a coincidence. My mother disapproved of my…thought of me as a screw-up…but she always loved the name _Black (insert surname chosen by leader here), _so she named me, then she disowned me because of my disfiguration and instead shows all her love to Blackkit, ignoring Foxkit almost completely. I didn't even exist to her. I was a blip in the perfect life she imagined around her and fixed her life to have. She even ignored when my sister died a long time ago from black cough…it was as if she had never been around before.

"We'll take them to the highest place we can in the territory, Grayrose, you can stay with them if you like too," Tornstar said. "I want the rest of you too get as far away as you can, go into the twolegplace if you must, alright? I don't want any casualties…hopefully Starclan will see us through."

"I know a safe place," Shiningrays said, coming forward with a blank look on her face. Grayrose made a disapproving noise while the rest of the clan looked at the previous kitty-pet with a skeptical gaze. "It's a small clearing beside a small running stream, it may have grown since the water, but it won't be too large. I've seen it flood before." Her eyes shimmered a deep sparkling brown. Perhaps if she wasn't a kitty-pet, she'd have a mate by now, but because some of the clan cats have forgotten their _heritage_, they still give being a kitty-pet a stigma. Stupid never-changing felines.

"Good, take them there please Shiningrays, it would be greatly appreciated," Tornstar said, his dark eyes showing relief now at the thought of a chance for the cats to escape. "However I need some brave souls to stay and warn the other clans, will anyone volunteer?" He looked at the crowd of cats before him. Something must've taken over Bluehaze, Oceanblaze, Frostleaf, Greeneye and I, because at the same time all of us suddenly spoke up,

"I will," As we each spoke, we looked at each other with surprise on our faces. Even Tornstar looked confused. _Why did I volunteer?_ Ever since I had a nightmare a moon ago, I hadn't stepped near water, and if I was forced too, I was extremely cautious. I had been swallowed and nearly drowned the blue depths of flood like the one appearing now, and since then, I had had this bad feeling, and now it all made sense.

"Um…thank you," Tornstar said, still taken aback, "All of you, I mean, one of you can stay back, but if you want, two of you can go together…" Tornstar's eyes were set on his daughter, Frostleaf, who stared evenly back. Greeneye stepped back, taking a breath, glad to not have to go. Something stirred in my stomach at the sight of it. I tossed the feeling aside.

"I'll go with Frostleaf, Tornstar," I volunteered, knowing that he would be worried about her. Frostleaf looked angry, but I gave her a knowing smile and she calmed down a little, no doubt cursing me in her mind. She had a thing about taking care of herself, and that just because she was the "leader's _little girl_ didn't mean she didn't have the spunk to take care of her-self". Truthfully her independent act amused me, and since we both were independent, even though it was for extremely different reasons, we had a lot of things in common. We could also both complain about our parents and then help each other be less bitter by reminding us about what the other's parent was like. It was quite a partnership. I had to admit, she was pretty, but that wasn't really something that intrigued me. We were close, but it was in more of a big brother-little sister way.

"Good, Oceanblaze, you go to Riverclan, Bluehaze, Shadowclan, Frostleaf and Blackrain, you've got Windlcan." My eyes flickered over to Oceanblaze and Bluehaze, each giving each other strange looks. My eyes narrowed. I'd have to talk to them about that later. I mean, we were sort of a clique. We were usually never without each other, and so it was strange to have the two withhold something from us. I guess Oceanblaze noticed my gaze on her, and she met it, her eyes widened for some reason as she looked at me. I blinked back, just as wide-eyed. Our stare was broken before I could decipher it, Hollowglade had stepped in the way, her dark eyes narrowed.

"Will we come back after the storm?" She questioned.

"I believe we should wait two sunrises before we come back…I don't want any casualties afer the traumatic event any way. I want everyone needs to _stay away_ from the forest, unless I've told them to travel and tell, and then I want you all to run as fast as you can away from the forest." Tornstar answered, and Hollowglade seemed satisfied.

"Now go, the water's gaining on us," Yellowrock ordered, flicking his tail at the entrance. His eyes moved to his daughter, and with one last touch of noses, she followed Bluehaze out of the camp without hesitation. I padded forward to Frostleaf as she said goodbye to her father.

"Bye dad, see you later, okay?" She said, sounding so convinced everyone would live. Lucky her. She didn't doubt the length of her life. Her dad didn't seem fazed, and continued his worried look. Then, without saying another word to his daughter, his eyes flicked to me.

"You protect her life with yours, do you understand me?" Tornstar commanded, and I nodded without a single bit of humor in my tone.

"Dad, I will _not_ let him die for me…" Frostleaf said, pressing her fur against mine. I thought about how smaller she was compared to me. I knew I was a bigger tom, but she had to just be smaller than average.

"Why not? You're my daughter, he's a warrior…his job is to protect you now," Tornstar answered. I knew he would never have said this to any other cats, but I was different. I was basically his son. He raised me whenever my mother ignored me.

"Dadd-"

"Got it, let's move your leaderness," I purred at her, and chuckled at the anger that resonated in her eyes. We passed out into the forest beyond our camp in silence…We moved silently, side by side and in complete calm, at least, we were calm until I heard the water.

"Fox-dung!" Frostleap swore, which she did a lot…

"It's the water. We have to hurry…" We moved faster in the direction of Windclan, our paws hitting the ground in unison and our breaths slipping out together. It was hot, and we tired easily, but the fear in us must've kept us going. Still, the water gained on us. I wondered how there could be a flood that spanned all the clans in such entirety. It was so…_convenient. _I'm sure Starclan had fun not warning us….

_But we did warn you!_ Something in my head shouted, but I ignored it with a snort.

"What?" Frostleaf asked breathily, obviously tired.

"Just….thinking…" I said tired as well, of course we didn't stop, because we didn't want to drown. We both knew and silently agreed that's what would happen if our paws stopped hitting the ground as fast as they were. As we came towards Windclan, I heard the sound of Ferretstar as she calmed 5her warriors. The clan was a bunch of hisses, meows of fear and protest, and angry cries.

"_Starclan why didn't you tell us?"_

"_Starclan it isn't fair!"_

"_What of our kits!" _

"_What will become of the clans if the water washes all of us away?" _

"_Starclan save us!" _

The voices grew louder as Frostleaf and I padded forward even more, giving each other one more glance before entering enemy camp. Ferretstar was standing surrounded by her anxious clan.

"Intruders!" A black tom with glowing blue eyes hissed at Frostleaf, and he was suprising close to her too. I stepped in front of him, blocking his path to her and glaring at him defiantly.

"Don't get too close to her, she bites," I said calmly, a bare smile gliding it's way on my muzzle. The tom hissed louder.

"Why have you come to us?" Ferretstar said, padding towards us, ears perked in interest.

"The flood, we were telling you that it was coming, but we see that you know. Now we'll simply tell you that it's extremely close…it'll be here any second now…" Frostleaf explained, wincing at the hisses that arose from the Windclan cats around us. "You have to hurry, or else you won't have a chance to-" The water was heard above the sound of her voice. Panic raged through the clan. In the chaos, I lost Frostleaf and was shoved towards the entrance. I realized I would drown here much easier. Fear made me run forward, jumping to shove the cats out of the camp, but the exit was hard to reach. Through the dirt place was one way they were going, then some other secret way, which I avoided 'cause I didn't know where it was going. I noticed an exit by the nursery that I could scramble through. I was turning towards it when the water suddenly entered the camp. I heard screeches muted by water, and sounds of horror echo through the cats who had yet to escape. The water reached me before I could get out, and under I went…

The dream-drowns were nothing compared to the real thing. It was pure adrenaline. I had no thought other than to live. I needed nothing else but oxygen and strength. My eyes were set on what I believed was the top of the water. Suddenly I realized that I was disoriented in the blue sea of liquid. My lungs started burning with the lack of oxygen, and I shivered in the coolness that surrounded me. I swam forward blindly. I blinked, and suddenly I was in the open air, paws flailing as I struggled to stay above water. I guess my forward had been the top. I gasped in the air, looking around for anything to grab onto. I caught onto something that wasn't a floating device. It was a dark brown she-kit, and she was flailing around in absolute terror. I was stunned, but when I saw her fall under the water I swam towards her, diving under to grab her scruff and lift her back up. I missed however, and then dived back down again with a hiss. I opened my eyes in the water and saw her, struggling in vain to swim upwards and failing horribly. I grabbed her scruff this time, feeling her fur between my jaws, and dragged her towards the air. We both gasped when we reached the surface, her little breaths in huge pants instead. I was warming her fur with my gasping.

"S-stop…l-let me go…" She wailed pitifully, spitting up water.

"If I let you go, then you'll drown, and we don't want that…" I said to her quietly, still paddling through the water. I'd spotted something floating in the water….it looked like the shiny material from the fox traps but in a larger form, and it had a dip in it, like a perfect circle ditch in the ground. I gave one more spurt of energy, tossing the kit into the ditch and I climbed into it after her. She was laying sprawled out and still gasping in fear. She tried to get up and escape from me, but she only dropped back down, giving a simple moan out in response to her exhaustion. "What's your name?" I asked her, and she looked up at me with pain and fear in her eyes.

"L-Leafkit…who're…you?"

"My names Blackrain,"

"You're…the…cat from…thunderclan…that came….to warn us?"

"Yes."

"So you won't…hurt me?" She said, her breath slowly coming back.

"No."

"Promise?"

"Yes."

"Where's the other kitty you had with you?" Leafkit asked, managing a whole sentence without stops. Good for her.

"I…don't know…" Worry crept into me. Frostleaf could be dead, and actually, _we_ could be dead soon. We couldn't float in this…ditch thing forever…we could starve, or it could fill with water and we would drown. I hate uncertainty.

"Maybe she'll find us?"

"Yeah…maybe…."

_**RIVERROCK…..RIVERCLAN**_

This sucked. I was shaking and shivering on one of the nests from Riverclan that floated, and I could tell that it was slowly tearing apart. I knew this had been coming…I _knew_ it. Fear ran through my mind, and I was thinking of my death; drowning slowly and painfully underneath the blue water. I think I let out a moan of terror. I couldn't even _see_ the water. Nope, here I was the blind she-cat floating on a dumb nest that I had to crouch in and slowly falling deeper into the water with every rock and roll the current gave. I just wanted to lay down and go to sleep. I didn't want to die though, so I stayed up and tried to keep steady. I knew I would die. It would take a miracle for me to actually live. _You're dead. You're dead unless you just happen to run into something and fall into it, and are safe for the rest of this dumb storm!_ With that thought, I pitched over, falling into the water. In fear, I started flailing and screeching in the water. It took me a while to hear the voice over my own horror.

"Hey! Hey calm down!" The voice was slightly familiar, the voice of a tom, soft-spoken, kind, shy….Rabbitfang? Now I don't know him personally, but I'd always had a gift for voices. I could tell a lot about a cat by their tone of voice, and Rabbitfang's was always warming. He was Windclan, but I saw him a lot- not literally, duh, I'm _blind_- since we were both medicine cats.

"Rabbitfang?" I had just realized that I wasn't drowning, and something sturdy was underneath me. I stood up shakily, not used to the swerving of the water current, I almost tipped over again. I felt Rabbitfang's fur steady me. He was warm against my wet pelt. I let out a sharp breath and looked up at him, even though I knew I couldn't see him.

"Yeah, hi Riverrock," He mewed, his voice holding a slight smile. "I'm glad you joined me. It's lonely here." I scoffed, and stood up on my own, glaring at him for helping me. I know I'm a little rude, but I hate people helping me. _He_ didn't need any help, so neither did I. I heard him chuckle at me, and I let out a small hiss.

"Where…are we? What are we in?"

"Some twoleg thing. It's fairly safe. I've been hiding here since the water came crashing into Windclan…" His voice took on a hint of worry. "But it's alright…however, on the case of where we are…that I can't answer you. This place is unfamiliar…It's getting dark now….bad because the water hit us in the morning time. It's very…unsettling…" While he was talking, I could only think about how obvious it seemed that he was perfect for being a medicine cat. He was sweet, soft, sensitive, and so easily trusted I could find myself trusting him. _No…No…Bad Idea Riverrock…do not get attached to this Windclan bunny…Bunny? That's all you could think of for him? Don't trust him. Don't trust him. Dumb voice._ He wasn't talking anymore…Oh I bet he'd been staring at me, confused at why I wasn't answering him and was completely zoned out. Maybe I was making faces again that gave away my thoughts.

"I'm fine, keep talking," I snapped at him, afraid that if he wasn't talking to me then I would look stupid. Luckily, I heard him cough awkwardly a little and continue.

"I think you should sleep. You have a couple wounds from your swim…I can fix them…I can tell your exhausted. I'll see what I can do about your wounds…we're floating through some higher grounds, I might be able to reach some herbs…do you think you'll let me heal you?" Rabbitfang asked, I heard him sit in front go me. I was crouching still, and so he rose above me by a lot. I looked up at his voice.

"I…guess," _DO NOT TRUST._

"You sure you won't hurt me while I try to heal you?" He asked laughter in his voice.

"Maybe, maybe not," I answered back, ears flicking and tail lashing. I heard him laugh again, which annoyed me since I wasn't trying to be funny…but I pushed the feeling away. I was feeling a bit sore, and I was tired. Lying down on the floor of my floating device, I felt Rabbitfang's paws search through my fur. I closed my eyes and tried to drift into an unsettling sleep. The dream was much worse than the word… A voice so intense rang out in my dream that I felt like I was shaking in the dark.

_If you fail…the whole world of the Clans will fail with you. All the clans will die…Prepare for your time of destiny….it will be the hardest many cats have ever followed..._


	3. Coming Together

**A/N: Sup. So far I've only got **_**one**_** reviewer (Thank you DarkWatersAhead! 8D). It's pretty saddening, but I'm going to keep typing this because I like writing it. I'm just trying to get to the part I want to write XD But I don't want to rush it and make it suck, although I still might do it a little, sorry 'bout that. Anyway, if you like the story, please review! Thanks for checking it out and reading it to Chapter Three anyway. The Allegiance thing will come out soon, although it won't be a real allegiance yet since they haven't gotten the leaders and crap figured out, although if anyone can guess who they think will be leader and deputy, go ahead, I'd love to find out what you think! Hope you enjoy it, its just a tad longer than normal…**

**~2XA**

_**CHAPTER THREE: COMING TOGETHER**_

_**GHOSTSHADE….ONE DAY AFTER STORM**_

When I woke up, it was almost too bright to see. I felt the warmth of fur next to me…I remembered then. I had saved the blue-furred she-cat the day before in the storm. She was curled up on the floating…whatever I'd found with her tail over nose. She snored softly with a purr curling it to the end. Beside her, there was another small cat, even smaller than her however, and he was wrapped around another one. The second to smallest cat was in my clan, Stripedpaw. I'd found him a little while after her screeching like a two leg kit. Then there was Stormkit, her little dark fur hiding beneath Stripedpaw. She was Riverclan. I'd found her clinging to a low hanging branch and near-death. She looked a lot better than now. While I was watching them, I thought about how I'd found the blue-furred she-cat…

_I was glad I'd found the brown piece of whatever it was, otherwise I'd be drowning. I was still in danger however because here I was sliding around in the choppy waters trying not to fall off of the make-shift floating nest. My eyes scoured the water for any cats I could find…I had so much extra space on my raft, so I thought I could help the suffering cats so less would die. This was a devastating blow to the clans I already knew. I was zoning out thinking about how bad the clans were going to be after this, when I saw something blue splashing in the water. Well…dark blue, grey blue…I waited until I was closer with my raft, and then dived in to get her, I grabbed her by her scruff, pulled her up with me, and watched her in awkwardness as she coughed up water and shivered. She looked up at me with beautiful blue eyes. I pretty much froze in my spot, eyes locked on hers. She didn't say anything, and I waited until she'd caught her breath. _

"_You…saved me?" She asked, her voice soft, like feathers. She sounded so unsure of herself, and a little scared._

"_Yes," I responded with a small smile. She nodded again before another coughing fit hit her. I waited for her to continue, but when she didn't, I did. "What's your name?" Her eyes looked away again before coming back to me. She coughed once before speaking. _

"_Bluehaze," She managed, before coughing again. When she was done, a question glittered in her eyes. "What's your name?" She voiced. I crouched down in front of her. We hadn't separated our eyes since she looked away before. Now we were locked in again. _

"_Ghostshade," I answered softly. She nodded, blinking. "You're from Thunderclan." It was more of a statement than a question. As if voicing it would make it seem sturdier. Bluehaze took a breath before she spoke this time._

"_Yes," She said, speaking delicately, trying to keep her voice. "You're Shadowclan." She responded with a frail smile._

"_Well, since I saved you, when you feel better…perhaps you might be able to help me look for more drowning cats…" I asked, and without hesitating, she nodded._

"_Yeah, with one condition," She tilted her head a bit. "I lost my friend in the flood. I want to make sure they're okay…so I'll be looking for them, if I see them, will you help them too?" I looked at her, shocked. Did she think I was so clan-centered that I wouldn't try saving others? That was wrong; I'd try saving anyone I could. It was in the warrior code. _

"_Of course, I wouldn't let your friends die because they're of a different clan. I'm just looking for anyone I ca-" _

"_I didn't think you'd let them drown, I had to make sure. I have to help them. They're the only family I've got," She said with surprising ferocity. Her ears flattened against her head for just a moment before they perked up again. I nodded. _

"_Help!" We heard the call for help, and both of our ears perked up, looking in the direction of the sound. _

"_Stripedpaw!" I hissed when I recognized the fur._

"_You know him?" Bluehaze asked, her ear twitching._

"_Yes I-"Before I could finish, Bluehaze had jumped into the water, swimming towards Stripedpaw with amazing speed. She was back before I knew it, dragging the smaller tom-cat up with surprising speed. She was a surprising she-cat in general in truth. _

"_Here. A life for saving mine," Bluehaze said, sitting calmly beside the water-spewing tom. She was so matter-of-fact about it. I blinked at her, in a daze. "Ghostshade? Are we even?" She asked ears flicking as a smile slid across her face at my trance. _

"_Err…uh-huh,"_

"_Good. I don't like owing debts."_

My eyes flicked to the supposed sleeping figures, only to notice that Bluehaze was awake, her eyes open as her tail flicked. Her deep blue gaze met mine with a questioning look in them.

"What?"

"You've been staring at me…I woke up, and you were looking at me weird." I gaped at her. _Dang it, look away fool! _

"I was just…thinking…in your direction?" I tried, sad that it came out as more of a question then a statement. For a moment, she stayed emotionless, then, her eyes lit with amusement. She sat up, looking at the two smaller cats beside her.

"Cute little things aren't they?" She purred, sounding a bit older than she was.

"You should see Stripedpaw whenever he's at camp, so serious all the time. I think he's aiming for clan leader…or at least he was…before…" I gestured to our surroundings. She nodded sadly, looking at the small kit beside Stripedpaw, her eyes softened.

"I didn't get to know her name…or her clan…"

"I'm guessing it's Riverclan by the way she was swimming when we found her, her name's Stormkit. She told me later, when she couldn't sleep," My ear flicked in memory. The small kit had been so horrified I doubt she'd ever take a swim again. I doubt any cat would.

"Hmm. Ghostshade," I jumped when Bluehaze said my name, but tried to cover it with a cough. A purr of amusement erupted from her anyway. "You're from Shadowclan, right? Stripedpaw is as well?" Her head tipped to the side ever so lightly.

"Yeah…why?"

"Well I just think it's funny."

"What?"

"We have Shadowclan, Thunderclan, and Riverclan…now we just need Windclan!" She smiled. I couldn't help but smile back. I mean, true it was lame, and times were serious now, but the way she cheered herself up about it kind of made me feel like the world wasn't going to end. "I wonder if we'll find som-oof!" She slid across our floating whatever it was as we ran into something else, something big and shimmery. Like the little shiny pieces that came from a fox-trap, or those barriers the two-legs put around their houses to keep us out, or in.

"Ah! Sorry!" A voice erupted from the other side of the tall…shiny thing. It was slightly familiar…I noticed that Stripedpaw and Stormkit had woken up at the disturbance in the floating. Stormkit was shivering in fear again, while Stripedpaw took on bravado, trying to seem unafraid.

"You mouse-brain! You could've sunken the thing!" The voice was tinged with sarcasm. Stormkit bounced up, looking suddenly fearless and kit-like again.

"Riverrock! Riverrock! Riverrock!" The kit started mewling non-stop. I heard silence inside of the shiny thing.

"Stormkit?" The sarcastic voice asked, a head popped up over the shiny thing, and misty-green eyes met with the small kit. "What're you doing…?" She looked up at us. I'd heard of Riverrock. She was called 'spunky, and grumpy' by the other cats. They always seemed to compare her to Jayfeather…some old legendary cat or something like that.

"They saved me! Can we go in there with you?" Stormkit asked, bouncing again. "Pweaseeeeee?"

"I think it can hold that much weight….let them come," The first voice responded, still unseen. Riverrock outstretched her paw, not looking at any of us as she did. She seemed to look…above us. When no one moved, she let out a sharp hiss. "Well come on then!" Stormkit purred and scampered up to Riverrock, she dug her small claws into the older she-cat's paw, and Riverrock winced in response. She pulled Stormkit in quickly.

"The rest of you, jump in!" The first voice said again, a male voice, soft and calming.

"I'll go first, then I can help Stripedpaw in from in there, and you can help him from out there," Bluehaze said, as she walked to the edge of the shiny thing. Her eyes darted to the fact that it was floating away fast.

"Yeah, okay." Bluehaze jumped over quickly and easily.

"Send him over!" She said from the other side of the shiny thing. I looked at Stripedpaw, who was now letting fear shine in his eyes. I gave him a reassuring nod, and he took a step, and jumped as far as he could. He landed tail and back legs on my side, and head and front legs on the other. I reached up, and shoved him over; at the same time I think Bluehaze pulled him. I heard a thump and _mrrows_ of amusement and pain. "Your turn!" Bluehaze said. I was aware of how far the thing was away now. Without another hesitation, I jumped as hard as I could, pushing myself as I far as I could. I closed my eyes as I sailed over the edge. My feet landed shakily in the shiny nest. When I opened my eyes, five faces looked back at me. I stood up and shook my fur.

"Well…hi," The male voice from before said in a friendly tone, his tail sweeping across his paws as he sat. "I'm Rabbitfang, of Windclan." Everyone jumped when Bluehaze laughed aloud. Her eyes widened and she dipped her head in an apologetic manner, although the laughter still glimmered in her eyes.

"You're um…the medicine cat there, right?" I asked, and Rabbitfang nodded, still confused at Bluehaze's outburst.

"Yeah…in training…Hazelclaw is still the medicine cat there..." Rabbitfang said, sounding worried. He was probably wondering where his mentor was now. The hurricane must've displaced many cats.

"And you're the one from Riverclan, right?" Bluehaze asked, seeming to have recovered from her laughter. Her question was directed at Riverrock, and it must've been a surprise to the black and white she-cat.

"Uh, yeah," She mewed, "also in training."

"Anyone know where we are?" Stripedpaw asked, leaning back unto his back legs trying to see our surroundings. I followed suit, and saw broken trees and water-drowned grounds. Small strips of soggy lands separated expanses of water. I didn't see any prey, only black spaces. Soon everyone was looking, eyes widening at how ruined our forests looked. Maybe it wasn't our forests…maybe it was somewhere else...

"This isn't home," Riverrock said into the silence. She actually hadn't moved, in fact I had forgotten she was there. "We've gone somewhere else…Far away…What's it look like?" Her ears twitched, and I could tell she felt lost in the new land. Rabbitfang took leaned closer to her ear, he whispered lightly, probably describing what the surroundings were. Riverrock listened with interest.

"Looks like a swamp," I said. I'd heard about a 'swamp' from the elders, hard to live in and very dangerous.

"Well, do swamps have good prey?" Bluehaze asked, her tail lashing. "I'm hungry, haven't eaten since before I almost drowned."

"Me too! I want some food!" Stormkit bounced, probably unaware of the danger the swamp posed.

"I guess we have to go hunting…" Stripedpaw muttered, fear still apparent in his eyes.

"I'll go, I'll bring back enough for all of us," Bluehaze said, standing up and stretching.

"I'll go with you." I said suddenly. "Besides, there are just too many mouths to feed…" I looked at the four other cats around us.

"I'll go! I am an apprentice and all. I know how to hunt…" Stripedpaw said, but I could still tell that he was scared. An idea popped into my mind, and when I met eyes with Bluehaze, I think we came to a mental agreement.

"How about you stay here, we need someone to guard Stormkit and the Medicine Cats, they're really important. You can protect them in case of an emergency," I tried not to laugh at the look of relief in the young cat's eyes.

"Alright, I'll protect them without fail!" Stripedpaw said with a smile. Stormkit giggled behind him, bouncing on her paws.

"Let's go," Bluehaze said, flicking her tail on my shoulder. "After we figure out a way to keep this thing in the same place…" She scoured her eyes at the current pulling our haven slowly forwards away from the swamp. If it moved, Bluehaze and I wouldn't be able to find it again.

"Ah, I've been thinking about that," Rabbitfang said, standing up beside her to look over the edge. "We can get ourselves stuck in the mud here if we all lean and shove this way, as hard as we can…" He demonstrated, backing up, and then ramming forward with his paws into the side of our floatation. Stormkit was the second to start helping. She rammed into the side with endless energy, giggling and laughing as if throwing herself against a rock hard wall was fun. It might've been for her. Bluehaze and Striped followed next, with Riverrock and me afterwards. We continued running into it until we felt it get sucked into the mud, stuck inside of it.

"Good," I said, standing back and panting. Stormkit giggled again and raced around the space she had. "I guess we can go now, that was a good idea Rabbitfang." I said, nodding at him. He shrugged, as if the praise made him feel uncomfortable.

"Alright! Food!" Bluehaze cheered, pouncing out of the thing we were in. I heard a _slush_ sound when she landed. "Ack!" I jumped out immediately after her, landing besides her and hearing the same sound. My paws were surrounded by wet and mushy dirt. I looked over at her, watching her lift her paws up experimentally.

"Part of the swamp experience," I said with a shrug, she snorted.

"It's gross!"

"Let's go this way, I think I see some firmer ground," I led her forward through the barely covered marsh. Everytime she ran into mucky ground, Bluehaze would make a noise that made me want to fall over laughing. Finally I realized I couldn't hear her behind me. When I turned around, she was gone. I admit, I panicked, I started running around screaming her name. _Dang it what if she's dead? What if something took her? What if she's lost? Or isn't coming back? _

"_Bluehaze! Bluehaze!"_ I screeched at the top of my lungs.

"Mouse-brain!" I heard behind me. I spun around, eyes widened in fear. They were met with deep blue ones. She stood, her tail lashing by her side and her ears flattened to her head. "I almost lost this mouse because of you!" She said, holding a plump, although wet, mouse.

"Oh…sorry…" I answered, stepping towards her. I had the sudden urge to nuzzle her cheek and tell her how glad I was she hadn't suddenly disappeared. I was glad that I didn't.

"Did you think you lost me?" She asked in a mocking tone.

"Yes, and it was a _huge_ relief," I joked back. She smiled, but said nothing else. "I'll try to catch something else too. I don't want to sure one mouse, albeit big, between six starving cats."

_**BLUEHAZE**_

Hunting with Ghostshade was pretty fun. We joked, laughed, snuck up and pounced on each other. We had actually caught a lot of prey, mostly birds and the occasional water vole or mouse. I had caught two birds and the mouse from earlier, and Ghostshade had caught two water voles. We had been searching, but we couldn't find any more prey, so we decided we would share when we got back. Ghostshade had offered not to eat, but I had cuffed him on his ears and told him that starving himself wouldn't do much good. I had grown use to the sinking and slushy feeling of my paws as they came into contact with the muck and mud around the marsh. We were padding back towards the others, when both of us heard something, hissing and barking in the distance. I let out a small moan of annoyance, my eyes squeezing tight before I let my breath come out in a shaky sigh.

"That could be a cat from the clans…" Ghostshade said, seeming annoyed himself.

"Yeah, so I guess we go rescue them, at the rate we're finding cats we won't have any space in that nest to hold anymore." I muttered half to myself. When we heard another urgent hiss, both of us raced forward, searching for the sounds of the fight. When we reached them, I heard Ghostshade pull in a breath. It was a group of eight cats, obviously clan by the way they were fighting. I only recognized some of them. My eyes lit up however when they recognized a familiar pelt. _Oceanblaze_. She was fighting besides two toms, a she-cat, and in the middle of all of them were four small kits. I recognized Blackrain with her, destroying their opponents, which happened to be three dogs. Three dogs versus four cats was extremely unfair. Looking sideways, I met eyes with Ghostshade. The determination in his eye made me think he knew some of those cats down there. Without a word, the two of us snuck expertly behind the attacking dogs.

"We attack together, you attack the one far to the left, I'll attack the one to the right, the middle one will be confused," Ghostshade ordered, I nodded. "On the count of three…"

"_One…_" His voice was a soft whisper as we began to ready ourselves to pounce. We crouched, our bellies barely scratching the ground.

"_Two…"_ I murmured with him as he counted. I locked my eyes onto my target, wiggling my haunches as I gathered the power I'd need for the attack.

"_Three…"_ We attacked flawlessly, reaching our opponents in a matter of seconds. I raked claws through the dogs flesh, smelling the blood that immediately started to flow. I had climbed unto the dogs back as it flailed, trying to escape my sharp claws. I heard Blackrain laugh from beside me, and I realized that in the middle dog's confusion, Blackrain had latched himself on.

"Whoo-hoo!" He said, lauhing louder as he was tossed about. "Get going you mange-pelt! Flail harder, I want this ride to be _fun_!" He cheered. Out of the corner of my blurry vision, I saw Oceanblaze start to smile as she recognized me.

"Bluehaze!"

"Hide the kits, take them a little away and we'll find you when we're done with these dogs." I mewed. I looked to Blackrain, who chortled as he ripped the dogs flesh.

"Don't wait up for us, we'll take our own sweet time!"

"Go!" Ghostshade hissed as his hold on the dog loosened. I saw him snarl as the dog threw him off, and he rolled across the ground, his fur covered in mushy substance. The dog moved to him, paw outstretched, about to rake his claws across the lying cats face. I jumped away from the dog beneath me, reaching and sliding across the muck to land in front of him. The dog slashed down, and I felt pain radiating from my face. I opened my eyes and blinked the blood away. I scar right above my eye…I felt a little lucky…I could've lost my sight and been blind like Riverrock…no offense to her. I heard Oceanblaze yell a battle cry as she attacked the dog that had injured me, along with the other tom I didn't recognize. I saw the other she-cat helping Blackrain rip apart the dog he had been fighting earlier. I kept fighting, Oceanblaze and I were a team. We slashed, ripped, shredded, kicked, hissed, and won together. We sent the dog running with its tail between its legs. Soon after, it's two friends followed after. The dogs howled out their pain. I was pretty sure I'd pulled my shoulder during the fight, and I was limping on it. Besides the bloodied scar across my face, the pulled shoulder, and a few minor scratches, I had gotten off easy. Oceanblaze had scars and bruises all over, the tip of her tail was at a strange ankle, and it was battered and bloody. Blackrain seemed almost unscathed, Ghostshade had hurt his shoulder and ripped his ear, the tom looked bloody, but I didn't think the blood was his, the she-cat was pretty battered, missing chunks of fur here and there, but otherwise alright.

"Where are the kits?" I asked, preparing to help carry them back to where the others were.

"I hid them over there," The she-cat I didn't know mewed. "Will you help me get them, they're so scared…" She trailed.

"I'll help you Sundart," Ghostshade mewed, limping forward. The other tom stepped forward as well.

"I'll help too," He grinned at the other two. He must've been Shadowclan, because they all seemed to know each other. Suddenly his name hit me. Shadedlight. The three escaped into the trees, leaving Oceanblaze, Blackrain, and I alone. Oceanblaze came up to me, happiness lighting up her entire face.

"I'm so glad I found you! We thought you were gone forever! The territories were hit hard! This isn't even home!" She shook her head in worry. "I knew something bad would happen!"

"I think the current pulled us north of the clans, maybe we can travel back," Blackrain suggested with a shrug. I nodded, but truthfully I wasn't sure. I didn't know how to get back.

"Is it just you and the tom-cat?" Oceanblaze asked, sitting as she began to clean her wounds. It was obvious they'd been holding their own for a while until we'd arrived.

"No. We have a kit, an apprentice, and two medicine cats with us, they're back in this tin thing…it was helping us float in the storm…would you like to come back with us?" I asked.

"Of course Mousebrain! I am _not_ getting separated from my clanmates again! We have just got to find everyone else!" Oceanblaze said loudly, bouncing unto her paws.

"When they get back we'll go, alright?" Blackrain said to her, trying to calm her down, he laughed when she nodded adamantly. "By the way, have you seen Frostleaf? I was wondering if maybe she might've gone with you…" The hope in his grey-yellow eyes almost made my heart break.

"No…I haven't seen her anywhere…" I really wish I had. "Have you guys seen anyone else from our clan?"

"Nope…it's just us…" Oceanblaze said sadly, her head lowering.

"Well at least you have medicine cats," Blackrain mewed, trying to sound upbeat and looking only crestfallen. He pointed his tail at Oceanblaze's, bloodied and ruined.

"Yeah, they're in training but still, it what we've got," I responded. Suddenly Oceanblaze popped up.

"Why did you protect the black and white tom?" She asked, her eyes narrowing as she spoke. I faltered. Why had I done that? Oh yeah, warrior code.

"Had too, it's in the warrior code, help who you can." I retorted. Blackrain snorted.

"It's not. It's just nice to do so. When someone's dying, you usually are told to jump in and help, but I mean, you _face_ is…" He cut off when I glared at him.  
"It'll be fine. But I still don't know why you would do that…" Oceanblaze said soothingly, her tail wrapped around my shoulders as she pressed her fur against mine.

"I just did alright? Let's not worry about it." I answered, and I was glad the conversation ended because Ghostshade came back with his two friends. All of them held small kits in their mouths, and when the kits sat down, two of them, similar in color, moved quickly to Oceanblaze's side, while the other one clinged to Blackrain.

"Who're you?" I asked the little kit that stuck to Blackrain. She hid behind his front paw, but after a moment, she answered me.

"Leafkit…" Her voice was soft and small with fear.

"Let's move," Ghostshade said, looking in good spirits, until he saw my eyes. He moved quickly towards me. "That's what happened when you jumped in front of me?" He asked eyes wide.

"It's no big deal," I said, noticing how close we were as he inspected my face. "Let's go." I spun around, glad to not have to look into his eyes, and led the group forward, we grabbed our prey before aiming towards the others. It only took us a matter of time to reach the rest of the cats. When we did, they greeted us with confused stares, even though they seemed happy to find more cats. It turned out that Stormkit was the sister of the two little tom-kits that huddled beside Oceanblaze so closely. Riverrock sat beside Rabbitfang, her eyes narrowed as she snorted.

"Well great. Now we're going to have to walk,"

Blackrain chuckled at her not-so-joking joke.

**A/N: Well, I hope you guys review. I mean, people seem to be reading it, but I need some reviews you guys! I want it to be a kind of popular story XD Anyway, thanks for reading. Laters! The next chapter will probably come out soon. **

**~2XA**


	4. Survivors

**A/N: Sup! Okay, so I was at my cousin's house and they didn't have internet, so I just started writing this anyway despite the fact that I just made the third chapter. I thought I would hurry up and add this…so…here you are! Enjoy! **

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own warriors….at all…**

**CLAIMER: Plot, most of the characters= mine!**

**~2XA**

_**CHAPTER FOUR: SURVIVORS**_

_**BLACKRAIN…ONE WEEK AFTER STORM**_

We'd found a lot more cats since Oceanblaze and I had met with Bluehaze. The small swamp was chock full of us. We were now surviving together, functioning a little bit like a normal camp, although it was still pretty chaotic. The kits didn't have a nursery, and instead slept with the rest of the cats in a huge group. It was the best way for us to be warm and feel safe every night, all of us curled up together to keep warm. At the moment, I was relaxing and sun bathing in a small shaft of light that filtered through the trees. Leafkit was playing about me as if I was the nursery itself. The kit hadn't felt safe when many other cats than me, so I kept her with me as often as I could. At the time, she was playing with my flicking tail. She purred, and hissed, and snarled as she chased it. Across the area, Silverkit was eyeing her wistfully. Every day he had tried to get her to play with him, and every day she'd hide behind me and say "Maybe tomorrow". I had to admit the little tom-cat was determined. The area we'd chosen to live in was much fun for the kits, but it was also potentially dangerous. Snakes were everywhere they seemed to like the wet, humid, mucky environment. We'd found a large rock cave that had survived the storm, it had been wet at first, but soon it was better. Inside was a huge expanse of space. It fit all of the cats we'd found inside, and even held more. It also had little nooks and crannies for the cats to hide out in, and we'd made a designated area for the two Medicine cats to work. They'd been finding plants from all over, strewn about from the storm. They usually were wet or nearly ruined, but they were all we had. Outside of the rocky den it was wet, mucky, and dirty. We had had a hard time finding clean water, and if we did there was barely any amount. So far, we hadn't lost anyone to tainted water thanks to Riverrock's expertly trained nose. The prey was the bigger problem. It was scarce and hard to find, and when it was found it was scrawny and mud-covered, but it was food, and for the time being, the cats that resided with us actually felt safe. My ears twitched in amusement as Leafkit pounced around to the front of my face, her paws attacking my chest and neck.

"Die Thunderclan warrior!" She giggled. I knew I didn't mind her using Thunderclan as the enemy clan, but I saw Greeneye, whom we had found a few days ago, pop up in surprise. I slapped a paw over Leafkit, making her hit the ground. I gave an apologetic chuckle, and Greeneye looked away with a role of her eyes. I ignored Leafkit's squeaks of defiance beneath my paw. She wiggled, trying to escape my grasp, giggling as she did. I finally released her, and she gave me an angry glare, although I knew she wasn't mad, only amused. "What would that be for?" She asked, bouncing on her paws.

"Don't say that when we're around any other cats alright? You might hurt someone's feelings…what if someone used that on your clan?"  
"I'd rip their muzzle off!" She said, and then giggled afterwards, but when she looked at my eyes closer, she grew quiet. "Okay Blackrain." Then she began to attack my chest and paws again. I saw Oceanblaze and Sundart padding towards me carrying a piece of small prey.

"Hey Blackrain," Sundart said, her gaze soft as it settled on Leafkit, who immediately ran to hide behind me. "We brought you and Leafkit some prey to share." I grinned a little at her as she dropped the scrawny water vole in front of me.

"Thanks," I grabbed the vole with paw and offered to Leafkit. Hunger glittered in her eyes, and she launched forward, stabbing her teeth into the flesh of the vole and giggling at me, she released her 'kill' and looked at me.

"I'm a hunter!" She giggled some more before going back to try and pry a piece of prey away from the bones. I didn't try to eat anything, instead just waiting for her to eat her fill.

"Blackrain, Ghostshade and Bluehaze want you to go out and hunt after you're done eating, they said you could take Greeneye, Dawnmask, and Yarrowpaw, they thought it'd be helpful because those three were found together," Oceanblaze relayed, I nodded, then looked to the kit in front of me.

"Would one of you mind watching Leafkit? She doesn't like to be alone or without me…" I cuffed her ears with my paw lightly, grinning at her when she giggled.

"I will, Sundart has to go out again, I'm watching the Riverclan kits," Oceanblaze said, mentioning the three kits from Riverclan. Silverkit was one of them, along with his sister Stormkit and his brother Splotchkit. Leafkit's eyes widened in fear of being around other kits, I gave her a reassuring look that she'd be fine. She nodded, but I could still see the terror. I pulled her closer with a paw. "They'll be glad to play with a new face; Silverkit has wanted to play with you especially." Oceanblaze said, speaking softly and nicely to Leafkit. Leafkit looked at her with wide eyes, still nervous. I pushed her forward a bit, standing up and stretching a bit. Leafkit tried to cling to my leg in effort to stay with me.

"What if I go hunting with you? I've been practicing _really_ hard!" She begged.

"Sorry Leafkit, you're too young, stay here by the cave, alright?" I purred at her, pushing her lightly to Oceanblaze again, who wrapped a tail around. I gave her one last lick on the forehead before leaving the little kit to gather my hunting patrol. I found Greeneye inside the cave cleaning up the nests that had been made out of feathers, surprisingly, along with moss.

"Hey Blackrain, I'm to go out hunting right?" She asked, prancing away from a half cleaned nest and landing in front of me.

"Yup."

"Good, I'll get Yarrowpaw, you get Dawn, alright?" She offered, and I nodded.

"Meet you at the entrance to the cave."

"'kay." She responded before bouncing off.

I found Dawnmask focusing on Whitedawn as he explained something to her, she nodded happily, smiling sheepishly at the young tom/

"Hey Dawnmask," I greeted her, "Whitedawn," I gave him a nod of hello, and he offered up a smile. Whitedawn was a calm, friendly, and very excepting warrior. Truly, I like him. Far too many cats had been causing problems related to who's in what clan. The only reason we had all manage to stay together was because Oceanblaze and Bluehaze had reasoned with everyone saying that clan origin didn't matter anymore because for now we were lost. Whitedawn and Dawnmask had never caused a problem with that, they were nice cats. I enjoyed being with Dawnmask, she had a calm and friendly outlook and was always ready with a smile and a friendly shoulder to lean on. "Dawnmask, Bluehaze and Ghostshade asked if you wanted to go on a hunting patrol with Greeneye, Yarrowpaw, you, and me."

"Sure!" She exclaimed cheerfully, bouncing to her paws from where she had previously been laying besides Whitedawn. She followed me as I made my way back to the cave entrance.

"So, you and Whitedawn get along…"

"Blackrain..." She said a warning in her tone despite the giggles. "We're just friends, anyway, we're not of the same clan…and perhaps our clans will come back…"

"Perhaps…but if not…" I said in a sing-song voice, she laughed back at me, running ahead and hitting me with her tail as she passed. I laughed back at her. As we reached the cave, I saw Greeneye waiting with Yarrowpaw already, both of the she-cats laughing and grinning together. I noticed that if I looked around the area, it seemed almost at peace. For the moment, no one was fighting, arguing, or attacking each other. I really hoped it stayed that way.

"Ready to go you two?" Greeneye asked as we approached. Dawnmask nodded, bouncing again on her toes. Silly bouncy she-cat.

"Yeah, let's bring some food back. Don't want to starve you Greeneye, or you'll get cranky and act like the elders." I mewed. Yarrowpaw and Dawnmask tried to stifle their giggles while Greeneye simply rolled her eyes in annoyance.

"Come on Mousebrain…"

**_RIVERROCK_**

Life at camp had been fairly easy; Rabbitfang and I had been taking care of simple injuries and wounds from the cats' journey down stream. I was patching up Switchpaw's shoulder. Ghostshade had found him on a patrol nearly drowning, he had cut his shoulder on a sharp rock, and it was dirty from the nasty water. I sniffed the wound. It didn't smell rotten, so I assumed it wasn't. I rubbed a poultice, one we were fast running out of, across the cut. I heard him wince, pulling in a breath.

"Why does it sting so much?" He muttered.

"Because it's working," I answered back, amused. The young tom was a little pouty about not being able to be at full potential. The other apprentices were glad to be so important to the group of cats at the time. They were building nests, dens, helping hunt, finding more cats, and even helping Rabbitfang and me heal the other cats. "Try to stay off of it." I ordered as I finished rubbing the poultice.

"Alright, when can I get back on it?" He asked.

"A few days, it won't be long if you don't land on it," I retorted. "Now if you get on it…" I let him leave, listening to his paw steps as he padded out of the cave. I turned to face the corner that held our dwindling supply of herbs. _Yarrow, pansy, coltsfoot, catmint, oh that's helpful, it's very wet, and can be cold here. Poppy seed…_I was so distracted with the few plants that I didn't hear the cat that arrived behind me.

"Riverrock?" The voice made me jump. _Shadedlight_. That cat gave off a bad vibe. I didn't like him much, if at all, in fact just the thought of him made me think of ghosts coming back to snap your head off.

"Hello," I mewed in response. "Can I help you?" I asked without looking at him.

"Yeah, I think I might've bruised something," He answered, I heard him step closer to me. I turned around to face him.

"Where?"

"My stomach," He answered quietly. I moved my paw to him, searching for his side, I used his paw, slid upwards, and then over, reaching his side efficiently. I felt him twitch away slightly as I moved my paw to his third rib.

"Looks like you bruised a rib. It's not broken, it just seems lightly bruised, I think if you don't sleep on it or move much, it'll heal on it's on." I told him.

"Good, thanks," He mewed, but he sounded like he wanted to say something else.

"Can I help you with anything else?" I questioned, looking at where I imagined his face to be.

"Yes, actually," He said, leaning in closer to me and bringing his voice down to a whisper, "Do you know if Bluehaze is the granddaughter of Lionblaze and Cinderheart?" He asked. The question seemed random to me, but a shiver went down my spine anyway. It couldn't be important…it was simple, though random, question.

"No, I don't." I responded, hoping our eyes were meeting. I needed to seem a little intimidating, but I still had the feeling I didn't. I wanted him to stop asking questions that freaked me out…if that was possible since even the thought of him scared me a little. I almost sighed with relief when I heard paw steps entering the cave again.

"Shadedlight?" Rabbitfang's voice echoed in the recesses of the cave. I grinned politely at the tom-cat in front of me.

"If that's all Shadedlight, can you clear the area? I have a whole lot of herbs to move around, and we never know when a new cat will show up with some injury or another." I mewed in a friendly tone. I know, odd for me, but the cat scared the dirt out of me, so of course I had to get him to leave the nice away. Blind cats and fighting don't usually mix well.

"Fine," He answered, sounding slightly put off and annoyed at the arrival of Rabbitfang and my dismissal. The awkward silence hung in the air until Shadedlight left the cave. We were still silent for a moment before Rabbitfang spoke to me.

"I have never seen you be so polite to anyone before," He said, and I snorted at how amazed he sounded.

"You haven't known me very long," I retorted, and I could almost feel the smile I knew he had on his muzzle. I turned around and continued to sort the leaves. _Sage…_

"No, I haven't, but it'll be fun to get to know you," He said, coming to stand beside me and help me sort. "Where'd you put the coltsfoot? I found some extra you missed."

"It's here," I say, placing my paw near the pile I'd made earlier. "And what do you mean?"

"Well I like you. You may be sarcastic, rude, and cynical, but you do tell it how it is. I think that sometimes I'll sugar-coat things too much because I'm afraid that I'll hurt someone…you aren't…" He explained. I listened quietly. Sure, he was right on the first part, but wrong on the latter. I did care if I hurt someone I just managed to push past that. Alright I didn't 'manage' I just said stuff without thinking about the consequences. I had always said stuff without thinking. Things just flow out of my mouth without warning half the time.

"Hmm, well. I doubt most of the cats around here like me. They don't realize how keen my hearing is," I gave a dry smile, but continued looking at the herbs in front of me. I'd heard the cats talk about me. They avoided me, and spoke in hushed tones around me. It was fairly obvious what they thought. I was surprised when Rabbitfang snorted at me. He'd never made such an offensive sound before. I was almost proud.

"Who cares? The apprentices and the kits look up to you. Without you, half the clan wouldn't run. Bluehaze and Ghostshade depend on you," Rabbitfang pressed his shoulder against mine. "Get it? You're needed. Who cares if you're liked by the snotty cats outside who are too scared to admit that they're too scared to leave the cave?" He asked his voice tinged with annoyance. I'm sure it did bother him that those cats did nothing but fret and worry all day. However, I picked up on something else in his monologue.

"You called all of us a clan," I murmured. I heard him sigh, probably because it seemed I'd ignored his entire talk and instead had only listened to what I wanted to hear. "You don't believe that the rest of the cats from the clans, the leaders, will come back for us, do you?"

"I wouldn't come back for us. So no, not really," He responded.

"Why?"

"Because they've already lost so many, and coming back to get a few young warriors, apprentices, and kits, is just too risky. I would know the land is dangerous and worthless. I would assume they were all dead, and I'd move on." He mewed coldly. He didn't seem to be the tom I usually knew, nice, sweet, friendly, or caring. Then I realized he wouldn't do that. It what he assumed our leaders had done. Truthfully, it did make sense; they probably wouldn't sacrifice cats to recue unlikely survivors like us. Although I had to admit, there were a _lot_ of survivors. The thought returned to me again. We were like a clan…perhaps there were enough of us to make a true clan even though the land was bare and ruined…maybe we could survive out here alone…just one clan…

"I need to talk to Ghostshade and Bluehaze; they seem to be keeping this clan running." I mewed, facing the entrance to the cave.

"Why?"

"I have an idea…albeit a risky one, but an idea…one that could help this group of cats survive…"

"What would that be?"

"It's quite simple actually…"

"What?"

"The idea…"

"No I mean what's the idea?"

"I think it'll work if we really try…"

"Riverrock."

"….and give it a chance…"

"_Riverrock._"

"…perhaps we'll even thrive-"

"RIVERROCK!"

"WHAT?" I glared at him.

"What's your idea?" He asked quietly. I blinked at him.

"Come with me and I'll tell you with the others," I said. I didn't get an out-loud answer; I was only assured by the sound of foot falls as he came beside me.

"Alright, to the leaders we go."  
_

_**GHOSTSHADE**_

I hadn't slept in forever. I was listening to _another_ complaint about _another_ fight that _another_ cat had started. _Again._ Bluehaze was sitting next to me, and the look in her eyes told me how badly she just wanted to shred this cat. His name was Birchfoot, and he'd attacked one of the other cats, Twilightfur, after calling him names because of his _clan_. I was tired of this clan separation thing. Birchfoot had actually been the biggest problem so far. He'd started ripples in the group, fights kept breaking out, and now doubt and suspicion was in every cat's eyes. Birchfoot was a problem.

"Well maybe the dumb Windclan cat should talk to his own mouse-brained clan," Birchfoot snapped, his ears pressed against his head. Bluehaze tensed beside me, the fur on her neck rising up in anger, yet she kept her tongue.

"I wasn't even bothering you!" Twilightfur hissed, and his hackles rose. Birchfoot had gotten angry when he'd spotted the Windclan tom-cat speaking with his little brother, Harepaw. Harepaw didn't seem to mind, but something was obviously off with Birchfoot. Harepaw sat in between the two, his paws shuffling as he watched them.

"Maybe you should learn to deal, or get out," Bluehaze hissed at Birchfoot. The tom glared at her for a moment before he rose, stepped towards her, and snarled into her face.

"I like my she-cats silent."

"I like my tom-cats smart," Bluehaze retorted, smirking at the anger that glittered in his eyes. I snapped to attention when Birchfoot's claws unsheathed. They dug into the mucky ground, and for a moment, the two only stared at each other, glaring to see who would back down. I somehow knew that it wouldn't be Bluehaze. "Now sit down, shut your trap, and don't start anymore fights, or you'll be out on your own…without food, help, or anyone to argue with. Oh, and if you do it now, I won't ruin your reputation as the 'bad guy'." She purred in a strangely threatening voice. Still full of anger, Birchfoot backed up and sat, never removing his gaze from hers. She smiled triumphantly.

"Harepaw…Twilightfur….Birchfoot…I guess you're free to go…try not to get yourselves into any more trouble…" I said my eyes widened on Bluehaze. She only looked at me when the three cats were gone.

"What?" She asked, her eyes questioning.

"You're just…amazing," I mewed back. She blinked in surprise before looking down at her paws in embarrassment. If cat's could blush, she would've been red as sunset.

"You really think so? It wasn't really that big of a de-"

"Yeah, it was…that was amazing…I don't know how you did that…" I muttered stepping closer to her. She looked up at me with a shy smile.

"Ghostshade! Bluehaze!" Riverrock's voice erupted from in front of us. We face forwards, seeing the she-cat and Rabbitfang walking towards us urgently.

"What is it? Did someone else come back hurt?"

"No, not yet," Riverrock answered with a sly smile. "It's just that, I had an idea…I think if I sleep on it, perhaps Starclan may help me out, but I wanted to run it by you first."

"What is it?" Bluehaze asked, sounding intrigued.

"A clan…I think we can bring these cats together…make them a clan…" She began, rattling off her ideas. She thought that because there was only one clan, and because we were younger, surely to be set-up different because of the circumstances, that perhaps we could even find some ways to change certain rules. "There'd be no clan separation, because we are a clan."

"I like the idea," Rabbitfang said. "If we can get the other cat's to agree, we can find a better place for a camp, and we can start our clan. It'll be a lot of work, but we might be able to get away with it."

"It could work, and things would get easier around here if everyone is united…" Bluehaze said thoughtfully. "There's a problem of the leader and deputy though. We have no moonstone to make a leader. Also, all those kits out there…they need mothers…we don't have anyone for them…" She continued, giving a list of problems.

There is no moonstone

There are no mothers for the kits

There are no mentors

What would you name a clan made of four clans?

The tension between the clans is still large

The land they are on is not good for a struggling clan

Finding a new home will be dangerous

Cats are still searching for lost friends and relatives

It'll be very challenging

Finding a leader may be hard because of the cats clan divisions…they'll want their clan to lead

"Okay, so sure, the idea is great, the idea has some flaws, but it's the best one I heard so far…" I answered.

"But what about the four clans…?" Bluehaze asked.

"They aren't coming back…they're gone for now…when they come back…the group can disband…but for now…we need this…" Rabbitfang said coolly. I'd never heard him sound so cold before.

"Maybe we should wait on the leader thing…but everything else…we can do that…" Riverrock decided. "Come on, it's worth a shot. Hey, why don't you get the clans to separate, and offer up an advocate for each clan group? You can hold a meeting and they can vote and debate about what it is they want. You can put forth the issues the cats have and everything…it'll be a good thing, helpful in fact…it could show who the top cat in each clan is, and _that's_ good information to know." Riverrock added.

"Advocates? Maybe…I mean perhaps…I'm still not sure it'll work but…" I started, surprised when the other three cats looked at me with pleading eyes.

"Fine! We'll try it…we'll try it…"

_**FROSTLEAF**_

_Run or it'll catch up…_

I tried going faster, but I'd been running much too long. My lungs hurt, my paws hurt, and my everything hurt. I could still hear the dog catching up. I could feel myself giving up. Why not go and join Starclan? It seemed like a nice idea. I could eat all I want, be with my clan mates and even others…it would be a lifetime after my lifetime. I kept on running, giving it one more blast of energy and trying to dart as fast as I could around the muck and mush. That at least slowed down the dog. It didn't have the ability to avoid the clingy spots. I could tell I was slowing down now…I didn't have much too keep me going. I could hear the dog gaining on me, and soon, I could feel his hot breath on my flank. I stumbled a bit, and that's what sealed my fate…I felt its teeth puncture my sides as it lifted me off the ground, it had barely been able to really get its grip before it stepped into some especially soft mud and grew trapped, I flung forward, hitting something warm, toppling it over and landing on it. It was soft, and smelled oddly familiar and safe…

"Frostleaf?" The voice was full of amazement, and it was so familiar. I snuggled closer to the fur despite not realizing what it was. When it pushed me away a little to see my face I recognized the nice, friendly, humorous eyes and the dark brown fluffy fur.

"Blackrain?" I said my voice cracking as I hadn't needed to use it for days.

"I can't believe you're alright! I had thought you were dead! I'd been so worried about you!" He licked my cheek in a friendly gesture. I gave him a tired smile.

"Dog!" I heard the familiar voice of Greeneye as she erupted from a nearby bush with two other she-cats. She froze when she saw me. "Frostleaf?" I nodded. Blackrain helped me to my feet.

"The dog is there," I said, pointing my tail towards the stuck dog, which had started to howl in fury at not reaching its prey. Greeneye and the two she-cats raced to the dog, and the sound of snapping and growling surrounded them. "I'm so tired Blackrain…is there anywhere I can sleep?" I asked, shaking as I stood. Blackrain pressed against me, his fur making me feel safe all over again. He nodded, but the worry in his eyes was obvious.

"You're bleeding."

"Yeah…I guess I am...can you take me to that place? I'm so sleepy…" I said quietly. I don't remember much after that…because my vision began to get spotty as he led me forwards. I was glad to trust him. It was nice to have someone to trust…My last memory before I fell asleep was dark soft fur and the smell of a friendly Thunderclan warrior before darkness washed over me.

**A/N: K-dokey! Finished this in record time 8D anyway, hoped you liked it. I thought I'd introduce Frostleaf more since she'll be highly important later. Well I've stayed up late and I have so stuff to do early EARLY in the morning, so….night y'all!**

**~2XA**


	5. Council, I beg of You

**A/N: Sup. Thank you peeps for reviewing…I made a new cover, review and tell me if you guys like it. I drew it myself on my iPod 8D I was pretty proud. Anyway, enjoy this next chapter.**

_**CHAPTER FIVE: COUNCIL, I BEG OF YOU**_

_**GHOSTSHADE….**_

Six cats sat in the small area surrounded by nothing but mush and pitiful trees. None looked nervous, some looked skeptical, and all looked intrigued. We had agreed to use Riverrock's idea, and she had been ecstatic about it. Truthfully I'd never seen the blind she-cat so excited and optimistic about anything. Anyway, each clan survivors had voted for the cat they wanted to represent them. Windclan had voted Whitedawn, unsurprisingly. The tom was smart, thoughtful, and not easily wavered. Riverclan had picked Hazelflight, he was friendly, gentle, and very careful as well. He knew where to speak and when not to. There had been a slight problem with that vote, because Birchfoot was just _sure_ that he should have been the one to make the vote. The others had disagreed because they knew how one-sided Birchfoot was. Thunderclan had obviously picked Bluehaze. The dark grey she-cat was the perfect pick, and she was well loved by her survivors. Actually, most cats like her. Basically all besides Birchfoot and Shadedlight…but Shadedlight had always been a strange cat, even before the storm. He was obsessed with stories of the past. Especially stories about Lionblaze, Jayfeather, Dovepaw, and Firestar, no one had ever really questioned why…For some strange reason Shadowclan had picked me…unanimously. I had been slightly surprised, although maybe I should've seen it coming, I had been helping to keep the group going…I didn't mean to be leader though. I actually didn't want it, because I didn't want to fail or choose wrong. The only two other cats there were Rabbitfang and Riverrock, although they weren't giving any opinion, only telling the idea.

"The point is that we can work together as a clan, like a clan," Riverrock explained, an expression of determination set in her eyes. "We can designate a leader, perhaps of you all's choosing, a deputy, also chosen, and the warriors can mentor and fight and hunt."

"Without an actual group, we might die out here. It can't hurt to survive the way we know how. A clan is how we know how…" Rabbitfang added, his eyes searching out each Council chosen warrior and meeting their questioning gaze.

"The Thunderclan cats are worried," Bluehaze began, waiting to finish until all cats eyes were set on her. "That some cats will be more aggressive and against the idea than others, Thunderclan is willing to attempt this, but they don't know if it will work…they don't want bloodshed between the makeshift clan." I tried not to smile at her. Perhaps she'd become the leader of the clan. Shadowclan had also agreed to the proposition, they just didn't know if it would work without bias.

"Windclan has the same problem," Whitedawn mewed, "And also, choosing a leader, what will we do about that? Clans will want one of their own cats as leader, therefore it will be tainted."

"Not if we wait," I spoke up, when the eyes of the other cats settled on me, my heart did a flip. I had to stay confident, so I continue. "If we wait until we believe the clan feels unified, perhaps the clan boundaries will have faded away enough to make a clear decision…"

"That could work, but a clan without a leader?" Hazelflight shook his head. "That's impossible they need someone to look to in bad situations."

"What if we use the council…if the council makes the decisions, and then later we pick the leader over the council…would that maybe work?" Bluehaze offered. Hazelflight looked thoughtful, seeming to weigh the decision in his head.

"I think Windclan will agree with that, so I believe if Hazelflight agrees, I can move on to my next question." Whitedawn look to the Riverclan warrior.

"I agree."

"Good, then, my next question is about the kits we've found. They're motherless, and cats have mothers for a reason. If we will work like a clan, then there will be no time for everyone to watch the kits. We need some of our warriors to raise them." Whitedawn stated. Bluehaze sighed, worry in her deep blue eyes.

"That's bad. We're so young, too young to raise kits because we've barely been raised ourselves. I do see your point though, it would be smart to assign the kits mothers…but who? We can't force motherhood on anyone…" Bluehaze's tail wrapped around her paws as her gaze swept over the other cats. I imagined the rested a little longer on me than the others. _You're from two different clans!_ A small voice in my head popped up. _Not for long…_ another voice responded perkily. I almost laughed aloud at the realization.

"Maybe volunteers," Rabbitfang spoke for the first time, his tone casual. "She-cats who wouldn't mind raising some kits or maybe the kits might already be attached to them and the she-cats will gladly raise them anyway."

"Volunteers, a good idea, it could work," Hazelflight mewed, a smile on his muzzle. "What about mentors? No cat here has mentored…the apprentices know some things, but they don't know much, and a Clan will always need warriors…"

"The council can pick cats they believe will be good mentors for certain apprentices…" Bluehaze offered. "And because one of us is from each clan, then we know each warrior and apprentice well."

"Yeah, it'll be a group effort," I said, nodding. "We'll need each of us to decide, and we'll do the ceremonies together…"

"Oh yes, perhaps each of us can get a part to say," Hazelflight mewed. "Then we can practice, and have it memorized…we may have to tweak it a little, but it could still work."

"What about this territory…can we really make just one big cave our home? We will need to find a new place…perhaps send a couple of warriors out to try and find a good territory. That's what the clans did seasons ago when their first homes were destroyed…" Whitedawn reasoned.

"Yes, but which cats?" I asked.

"Starclan!" Rabbitfang mewed suddenly.

"I don't think we can send the whole of Starclan…"

"That's not what I mean, I meant, perhaps Riverrock and I can use Starclan to decide. There's no moonstone…but maybe we'll get a sign…a dream…something…give us time for our ancestors to communicate at least…" Rabbitfang pleaded. The council cats looked at one another before nodding their heads to agree.

"How about three sunrises?" Bluehaze offered. Rabbitfang and Riverrock nodded, giving each other looks that said more than I could comprehend.

"What about the name of our clan?" Hazelflight asked. "We can't go unnamed…there has to be a title of some sort…but what?"

"I don't know…we've always had the five sacred names…we don't have any more to use…" Bluehaze muttered sadly.

"No…there's got to be something…we just have to think…" I said, trying to think. I must've looked as if I was trying to hard, because Hazelflight laughed and placed his tail on my shoulder.

"Don't hurt yourself," Hazelflight swept his tail back around his paws and looked to the other cats. "A clan name will come to us…I believe we should go over the decisions made, so that we can see if there are anymore…"

"Oh yes," Bluehaze mewed, "First; we will form a clan with the surviving cats."

"Second," I butted in, grinning. "We will have she-cats volunteer to raise the kits."

"Third," Hazelflight interrupted grinning wider. "We will pick mentors for the apprentices together."

"Fourth," Whitedawn had to join in. "We will wait three days for Starclan to pick cats to go on a journey to find better territory, if we get no sign, we will choose them ourselves."

"Fifth," Riverrock purred. "We will wait for a sign from Starclan to pick our leader and/or wait until the new clan is brought together more before picking that leader."

"Sixth," Rabbitfang laughed a bit as all heads turned to him, waiting for his addition. " We will chose a clan name after the clan has been brought together more and the leader has been chosen."

"I believe this meeting is over. Until we must meet again," I purred at the cats around me. "May Starclan keep our decisions pure…"

_**BLACKRAIN**_

I padded out of the cave and into the sunlight, leading Frostleaf with me, we were heading towards the fresh-kill pile when a blur of fur rammed into Frostleaf's leg.

"Ow!" She mewed. I spun around, looking at her afraid she had hurt herself, but instead I saw a smile on her face as she looked down at Leafkit battering her leg with tiny paws.

"Die enemy cat! Die!" Leafkit giggled and kept attack the dangerous leg. Frostleaf bent her head down and picked Leafkit up by the scruff. Leafkit squealed and laughed louder. "Stop it! Place me on the ground so I can defeat you!" She cried, laughing more. Frostleaf chuckled back.

"Now why would I do that? You'd defeat me!" She sounded muffled through the little kit's fur. Leafkit squirmed to escape, Frostleaf let her go, and the little she-kit rolled on the ground.

"Aha! I've escaped your grath-"

"-Grasp-"

"-you cannot defeat me now! Attack!" Leafkit tackled the older she-cat, who rolled unto her back laughing. Leafkit didn't notice the winces of pain, or the stiffness that Frostleaf felt, but I did.

"Hey Leafkit, there's Silverkit, why don't you go ask him to play?" I asked. Forgetting her older playmate, Leafkit smiled at me and bounded away towards her kit-friend.

"Why'd you do that?" Frostleaf questioned, getting up slowly and wincing at every movement. "We were playing..."

"You're in pain."

"_No,_ I'm just covered in beetle juice that's all," Frostleaf snapped in a sarcastic tone. "Of course I'm in pain Mouse-brain! I was just tossed by a dog, and before that I'd been tossed by a giant wave of water, so of course, I'm in pain." Her ears flattened for a moment, tail lashing. I looked at her with concern. I hadn't meant to offend her I just didn't want her to over-stress herself. I'd lost her once I didn't want to lose her again. I had promised her father that I'd protect her. I wouldn't break that promise. We locked eyes, and soon, after a sigh, her gaze softened.

"Sorry?" I mewed softly, looking down at my paws.

"Its fine Blackrain," Her ears perked up and she gave him a small smile. "Let's just go hunting…" She started towards the marsh. "Race ya'" She tossed a look at me over her shoulder, a smile across her muzzle. She took off without another word.

"Not fair!" I raced after her. If I wasn't kicking up muck and getting incredibly wet and dirty, I would almost feel at home. I could see Frostleaf's pale gray fur and dark stripes in the distance. She had stopped, and was staring across the dark and dirty water that covered most of the area, broken trees with only some green leaves or branches coming off of them.

"It's almost beautiful," She said quietly as I got closer to her. "In a sort of…strange…nightly way…almost haunting, you know?"

"Yeah, I can see it." I mewed, sitting beside her.

"I still miss our old home though…" She stared down at her paws. "And my father."

"I miss it all too. The normal clan life instead of this…surviving,"

"You don't think this is life?" Frostleaf gazed at me, her head tilting lightly.

"No…I think life is more…"

"More of what?"

"I don't mean that. I mean…just _more_…more of everything…I think there's more to life than just…surviving…" I said, feeling strange for voicing my feelings, but doing it anyway. I felt safe with Frostleaf, it was easy to speak to the she-cat when she wasn't trying to bite my tail off.

"Perhaps you're overthinking things," She mewed back to me. Her tail wrapping itself around her paws as she shivered. She pressed herself against me for warmth. My fur shivered at the touch, something that I swear had never happened before. "I think survival is life…and life is survival. To Survive, I know that I need many things that people wouldn't think I do…" Her voice had grown to a soft whisper. "Even thinks I don't think I do…"

"Like what?" I looked at her, blinking, wide-eyed at how close our faces were. We locked eyes, and in a voice as soft as her fur, she answered me carefully.

"Perhaps like you…" She looked away quickly. "You have saved my life many times before…and you're like…family to me…" She purred again, looking at me and ridding the situation of all awkwardness. "Although, we're definitely not even, despite the fact you saved me! I have gotten you out of bad scrapes more times than I care to remember! As kits, as apprentice, as young warriors, now…every step of the way my friend I helped you." Frostleaf laughed a bright smile on her muzzle. I smiled softly back at her.

"I wouldn't have it any other way…" Our eyes met again, but before she could respond, we heard a rustle behind us.

"Frostleaf, Blackrain, glad I found you," Stripedpaw was panting, but he looked happy and excited. "Ghostshade trusted me to bring all the cats back to the temporary camp." He pushed his chest out in pride.

"What for?" Frostleaf's ears twitched, and her head tilted slightly in question.

"They have an announcement about the council," Stripedpaw mewed, bouncing on his paws, "about all their really important decisions. I hope we become a whole clan! I miss clan life! It'll be so fun to battle train again." He purred.

"Yeah, it'll be great," I meowed cheerfully. Stripedpaw bounced one more time before running with only a 'hurry' tossed over his shoulder.

"Let's go Mouse-brain," Frostleaf tapped my shoulder with her tail, and we padded back to camp together.

_**STARCLAN**_

The four Starclan warriors sat, watching their ancestors warily. Hollowglade was snarling, her tail lashing and ears pressed against her head. She had not accepted her death well, and was harboring the anger from not being able to help her clan mates was making her time in Starclan less than it could be. Silvereye looked with wonder around the starry cavern, which was glowing with a magical light. The cavern had a waterfall rolling around it, and pretty light wavered on the gray walls. Redblaze looked bored, as if this cavern was nothing compared to the world outside of it. He wanted to be out with the other warriors, hunting the endless supply of prey that covered Starclan. Only Crookednight looked intrigued by the starry souls before him.

"Why are we here?" Redblaze asked, raising a brow in question. He was obviously impatient with the cats.

"Because, the clan will need you soon…they need to be led to Skyclan," Bluestar mewed, her eyes locking with the red colored tom.

"You mean that one clan, the clan Firestar brought together?" Hollowglade tilted her head, looking interested for once.

"Yes," A voice came from the darkness, and a tom padded forward. The four new Starclan warriors eyed him suspiciously. "I'm Buzzardstar. I was a leader of the previous Skyclan." The tom meowed eyeing each cat with a calm gaze.

"So we're supposed to lead a bunch of cats to a clan somewhere…somewhere," Hollowglade muttered. "We don't even know where!" The black she-cat's tail lashed again.

"Your clan mates need you," Tallstar mewed from his spot in the cavern. The black and white tom was the fifth leader in the group. There was Blackstar, Bluestar, Leopardstar, and Buzzardstar were the others. "You have to help them."

"Can't you help them?" Crookednight asked. Blackstar shook his head.

"Things don't always work that way," The white tom mewed, dragging his tail across his black paws. "We can't do this…only you all can…it's basically foretold..."

"What if we just…don't?" Hollowglade snapped back.

"Shut up and listen you incompetent young warrior. You're lucky to be in the presence of such great leaders as the ones around you. Not only that, but you're lucky to have been chosen to be so important to a clan!" Leopardstar growled at the other she-cat, making her flinch back in surprise. "So, suck it up now, or we can send you to the Place of No Stars, and you can hate your death as much as you hate that _hole._" The cavern fell in silence until Bluestar spoke, amusement in her voice.

"Don't worry about Leopardstar, she doesn't like cats that don't appreciate the life they had after they die," Bluestar explained. "Life is precious to all of us. Don't waste your death wishing you were still alive, because in Starclan, this is life too. It's just your second…one day you will fade, but if you do this…the memory of you will live on in a clan forever." Her deep blue eyes moved to each of the cats.

"We just have to help them to Starclan? How, we're dead…" Crookednight asked, his ears twitching.

"You're paws will lead you there. How else? You will walk with them in dreams…sometimes in the daylight…give them signs…anything you can…" Buzzardstar mewed.

"What are the troubles we're going to face?" Redblaze asked, ears perking. Bluestar exchanged a look with Buzzardstar. Leopardstar looked away. Blackstar scowled, and Tallstar muttered to himself.

"We…don't know…" Blackstar finally managed. It was silent in the cavern. The four cats took in their new destiny, a distant look in their eyes as they struggled with the idea of leaving paradise. Hollowglade was the first to speak.

"Sounds like fun…See you all at dawn tomorrow. Here right?" Before anyone could answer, the black she-cat left. The other four watched her leaf, confusion glittering in their eyes.

"I guess…I'm in…" Silvereye mewed, following Hollowglade out of the cavern. Redblaze and Crookednight soon agreed, and disappeared behind the wall of water. The five leaders stood there watching the warriors leave. Their eyes flicked to Leopardstar as she purred out.

"Well…that wasn't half as bad as it could've been…"

**A/N: Urg…squishing things into this story is so hard…but I'm working to get the background all covered…so yeah. The cats' reactions to the Council won't be out till next chapter...R&R I'm so tired XD I don't feel so hyper at the time. I'm about to start on another warriors story actually 8D So that's on my mind. **

**~2XA**


	6. MESSAGE

**A/N: Hey, sup. I am interrupting this usual broadcast because I suck at following through and finishing stories. So, I decided, to make myself write stories, and to make it so that I know whether or not people actually want to keep reading my stories, I decided that if I get one review for each chapter, then I'll update. So if you review for the next chapter, then I'll update the story. That way, I'm not writing stories no one wants to read. Yep, so there, put some effort into stuff XD Anyway, I'll just wait for the review and start on another story. I'll do that one up until I realize I'm getting lazy and then I'll probably do the review-update thing again. Well, thanks, REVIEW 8D**

**~2XA**


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